Elevated baseline and antigen-specific frequencies of Th1 cells in tuberculous lymphadenitis (TBL).

<p>(<i>A</i>) Representative whole-blood intracellular cytokine assay flow data from a TBL individual showing expression of IFN-γ, IL-2, and TNF-α. The plots shown are gated on CD3⁺CD4⁺ T cells. (<i>B</i>) Baseline frequency of CD4⁺ T cells expressing one, two, or three cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-2, TNF-α) is shown as bar graphs. The bar represents the geometric mean of the frequency of CD4⁺ T cells expressing the respective cytokine(s), and the error bar represents the 95% confidence interval in TBL (<i>n</i> = 25; grey bar) and PTB (<i>n</i> = 20; black bar) individuals. (<i>C, D</i>) Net frequency of CD4⁺ T cells expressing one, two, or three cytokines in response to CFP-10 (<i>C</i>) and ESAT-6 (<i>D</i>) is shown in TBL and pulmonary TB (PTB) individuals. (<i>E</i>) Net frequency of CD4⁺ T cells expressing the different cytokines in response to anti-CD3 stimulation is shown in TBL and PTB individuals. <i>P</i> values were calculated using the Mann-Whitney test.